The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1887-10-29
THE SUMNER TIME OF 1865.

when the Plague Breathed Upon the
People of LondOn-Terrible Realities.
When the terrible pestilence first
hreathed upon the people, there passed
one night over the city a comet "of a
faint, dull, languid color, and its motion
very solemn and slow" What may be
thus described has been seen since, but
In an age of "fortune-tellers, cunning
men, and astrologers," this event gave
birth to many strange stories ana pre-
dictions, to dreams and interpretations or
dreams, and to great dread amongst
the simple and ignorant, and even the
educated people. In this hour OF terror
the turn of these money-makers had
come; grave men in velvet jackets, bands,
and black cloaks frequented the STREETS;
their houses were hung with signs and
inscriptions. "Here lives a fortune-tel-
Ter; here lives an astrologer; here you
may have your nativity calculated, and
so on. And from the doorways, here and
there, one saw the sign of "Frlar Bacon 8
Brazen Head" or that of mother Ship
ton" or the "Merlin's Head" To the
proprietors of these newly-hung signs
terrified people focked in great numbers.
sions side by side, which few weeks
before had been gay, with throngs OF
effeminate courtiers and dandles, OLD
soldiers wealthy citizens, and whlstllng
apprentices, were now thronged WIN
wagons, carts and coaches, loaded with
women and children, with tents and bed
ding; and numberless men upon horse
back clattered over the stones, some with
and some without servants, carrying bag
gage, all hurrying away from the doomed
city. Morning, noon, and night, the
lord mayors door was besieged with peo-
pie, eager for passes and certificates OF
health; and morning, noon, and nlght'
the city rapidly emptied itself.
The gates were closed in vain, the
walls had withstood armies, but death
crept through them, over them, under
them, stalked in the streets, stared
through cottage and palace window
alike, and before it pale people fed. Add
ing horror to all this confusion, there
ran through the streets distracted Great
ures proclaiming the destruction OF the
city, and one was reported to have run
almost naked, with voice and counte-
nance full of horror" repeating contlnu-
ally. ooh! the great and the dreadful
Godl" We are told that at the coming
of the terrible realities of the visitation,
sectarian distinctions sickened and dled
away. Denominations were reconclled,
"the people focked without distinction to
hear the preachers, not much lnqulrlng
who or what opinion they were of. But
after the sickness was over that spirit OF
charity abated."
So commenced the plague, while all
who could afford to fly had fed before 1T,
which after all was very few compared
with those who remained. Quickly peo-
ple died in such numbers that they could
no more toll the bells or even bury the
dead in collins. Like fire, the distem-
per ragged most fercely in lines, one
house conveyed it to the next, leaving
ruin and desolation behind, and devour-
ing street after street till the whole town
was wrapt in the burning Of its dread
full fame. About June, the lord mayor,
Sir John Lawrence, and his aldermen
prepared, and on the first of July pub
Eshed, compulsory orders" for the
ninety-two parishes within the city
itself.
By these regulations all infected
houses were to be shut up and guarded
by specially appointed "watchmen," one
by day and one by night. No one was
suffered to leave these houses, and it
was thereby hoped that the plague might
be stayed, eff it should so please God"
The noble conduct of the lord mayor
and his officers strangely contrasted with
that of the king and his court, who all
fed away at the beginning and left
things to look after themselves. During
September the plague reached its height;
there died as many rs 1000 a day, and
the bills of mortality for the months of
August and September registered 9,870,
from all diseases. Including two days
which the bills are short of the two
months, there died of the plague alone
the terrible sum of $4,000 people.
Yet was it impossible that these &C
counts should register the true tale of
death; hundreds whose names were not
known persisted in the river, voluntarily
Quenching their burning agonies in its
waters. According to the city records,
the distemper destroyed sc, 500 personsin
all; but this figure, prodigious though it
is, for the reasons assigned above is prob
ably far below the actual number
Robert Woburn in Sunday Magazine.